Summer Changes
by SilverSmile
Summary: James Potter - most popular guy in school. Lily Evans - social reject. Remus Lupin - bookworm. Sirius Black - resident criminal. How could a summer project change anything? Light LJ & SR rating to be safe.
1. Announcements

The classroom was almost full as students from all four houses in their sixth year of schooling at Hogwarts swapped theories as to why they'd been pulled away from their end of school packing. There was only one more day to go before they would be leaving for their last ever summer holidays. That morning Headmaster Dumbledore had requested that all sixth year students were to report to this room at 10 o'clock on the dot; apparently there was some important announcement he needed to make. While important announcements weren't that uncommon; only informing one year level was odd and thus the Hogwarts rumor mill was at full speed as the speculating teens ideas became more and more outrageous by the minute. As usual the sixth years were about to find out that the rumors had not even come close to guessing the real reason for the meeting.

Silence spread through the students as Dumbledore's presence was noticed in the room. The aged wizard smiled slightly as people were elbowed and shushed. Looking around, his blue eyes sparkled with what a misguided fool would have called mischief, yet it was gone before anyone could tell for sure.

"I am sure you are all wondering why I have called you here today," he didn't get any further as the door to the room suddenly opened and a late comer stepped inside. The boy casually walked into the room, ignoring those who either shot him a glare or shuffled fearfully away from him.

"Ah, Mr Black…" Dumbledore smiled at the boy before continuing. "As I was saying; this year we will be having a summer project for you all to participate in. Before you object, you must know that this is the Ministry's wish and the mark received for it will be worth half your final grade next year." He paused as whispering broke out among the students.

"Yes, yes; I'm sure you're all very excited about this. Now this will be a group assignment and, as to avoid any problems, I have specifically picked out your groups. There will be no changing I'm afraid. You'll find the list posted in the Entrance Hall along with Professor Sprout who will hand you your assignments. There are a few rules, however. You must all put in an equal amount of effort for this or you will fail. Also, I would suggest getting started right away as it will take some time to complete. Due to this unexpected change of plans, all other summer homework has been exempted."

Cheering filled the room along with more whispers at the prospect of only having one assignment due for the next school year.

"Yes, it's all very wonderful. Now, I suggest you go straight down to the hall and collect your things as well as find out who is in your group. I will see you all at the feast tonight." With that the students turned for the door, but waited cautiously for Sirius Black to leave first, everyone shuddering as rumors of what he had done flashed through their minds. Once he had left the other students moved for the exit, anxious to find out who they would be stuck with for the summer.

The room emptied in a matter of minutes before it was just one quiet boy remaining with the headmaster. The boy shyly approached the old man, eyes glued to the ground.

"Remus, what can I do for you?" He asked the boy kindly.

"Sir, I was wondering if I could still do the other work and hand it in as extra credit?" he asked in a quiet voice, a blush staining his cheeks.

"I'm sure that would not be a problem." The elderly man smiled, causing the boy to perk up.

"Thanks Sir," the boy smiled lightly, glancing into the man's eyes for a brief moment before turning and leaving, a book clutched protectively in the crook of one arm.

"Have a good summer… and good luck." Dumbledore said to the now empty room.

***

"Did you hear about the sixth year's groupings?"

"Come on, who hasn't!"

"Fancy putting James Potter with those three imbeciles'?"

"I know! What was Dumbledore thinking?"

"Was he thinking?"

James winced slightly as he was yet again reminded of who he had been paired up with for the upcoming summer project. He had assumed it would be just three of the regular suck ups the school hallways were crawling with, but this had never even crossed him mind.

He had walked down to the front hall to have a look at his group and had felt his stomach drop at the names written in the little box along with his.

'_James Potter_

_Lily Evans_

_Sirius Black_

_Remus Lupin'_

It was going to be a summer of pure hell… that was if they even bothered to make an attempt at doing anything that would involve him. From what he had heard Black wouldn't show up for anything – the delinquent. Then there was Evans who might send one owl provided he did first and that owl would most likely contain a howler if her normal temper tantrums were anything to go by. Finally; Lupin. He'd probably be content to do the whole thing and, if they weren't being forced to put in some kind of contribution, James would have happily handed over the responsibility.

"Yeah it's all true; James Potter's stuck with _that_ group."

James sighed as yet another student 'whispered' about his misfortune. Looking up from his plate that he had been diligently staring at while brooding; he allowed his eyes to search out his three new group members seated along the Gryffindor table for the end of year feast.

He first noticed Sirius Black – resident Hogwarts criminal and 'bad boy'. The guy was sitting by himself as none of the other students in the school dared to go up to him. From what James had heard Black was one person to never cross. Among the rumors of attempted murder and theft, Black was supposedly a drunk who didn't give a crap about the rest of the world. Looking at the black haired boy however, James thought he looked like just another normal teenager who was rebelling against any kind of authority he could find. Admittedly he did look a little bit intimidating with his unusual grey eyes and habit of wearing dark colours all the time, but that was about the extent of it. Now that James thought about it, he'd never even heard the boy speak before and – previously – had never even given him a second glance.

Moving his eyes further down the table it wasn't difficult to locate Lily Evans. Apart from the space surrounding her that was almost as large a birth that Black was given, her red hair made her stand out that much more. Unlike Black, Evans was known for different reasons; being a social outcast and nut job. She was notorious for arguing quite loudly with any and all students in the school and never seemed to care what anyone else thought about her. James, himself, had only ever had one run in with the red head and that had been in their second year. From that one experience he knew her to be quite annoying and loud.

As he looked along the stretched table he almost missed the third member of his new summer assignment group; Remus Lupin. The boy was cramped in his seat and continually jolted by those around him who either didn't see he was there or didn't care. James suspected it was a bit of both. From what James had heard about the guy he was super smart but a complete and utter bore to be near. He was supposed to be a total bookworm and had, as far as he knew, not a single friend. The book that he had buried his nose in only served to reinforce the rumors James had heard as he turned away from the sandy haired sixteen year-old.

"James Potter," he looked over to the fifth year girl standing behind him, a blush covering her face making it bright red.

"Yeah?" He asked with an automatic smile lifting up the corners of his mouth.

She grinned nervously and launched into a speech about how she had liked him for so many years and would he please go out with her. It seemed that things never changed in this place. With an inward sigh James spared one last thought to his new group before settling back into the familiar routine of pleasing those around him.

***

Lily Evans – social outcast – walked along the Hogwarts Express' corridor purposely. She had three slips of parchment, three destinations and one hell of a stubborn determined streak. Glancing uninterestedly into the windows as she walked along, she ignored the haughty looks and sneers of dislike she received whenever she caught someone's eye and continued on her way. It wasn't until she was almost halfway down the train that she finally reached a compartment with only one occupant – their nose buried in a book. Sliding open the door and catching his attention, she spoke before he could do more than blink stupidly at her in surprise.

"Remus Lupin, right?" Not waiting for a reply she continued. "You're part of my group for this assignment so we're going to get together over the summer. There's this café I know, magical; it's easy to get to so it'll be perfect to meet up there." She handed him one of the slips of parchment which contained the address of the place before turning to leave.

"Be there in three days at noon so that we can start. The sooner it's done the less time we'll have to spend together." With that she closed the door again and continued on down the corridor like nothing had happened.

She only paused in her journey when she came to a packed compartment with people standing at the open door just to see what was going on so that they could claim to have been there later if something exciting happened. Pushing roughly past people, she ignored the irritated hisses and taunts as her emerald green eyes landed on James Potter's dark brown ones.

"James Potter; meet me here in three days time, at noon." She said holding out another piece of parchment.

"Like he's going to listen to you, Evans." A guy next to him growled out, dislike clear in his voice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know your name was James Potter," Lily snapped back with just as much dislike if not more.

"Why would I go meet up with you?" James asked her skeptically.

"We have an assignment to do, dumbass. Don't come for all I care, but it's your funeral when you fail." Lily shrugged uncaringly before shoving the parchment into his hand and turning and pushing her way out of the cramped space again.

Once free she continued on her journey. She didn't bother looking in any more windows as she knew her destination was the last compartment on the left. It was the one Sirius Black always used and people normally stayed FAR away from him. It was just a good thing Lily wasn't normal, otherwise she would never have boldly opened up the door to said compartment, no trace of fear evident on her face.

Sirius Black looked coolly over to her, obviously having been staring out the window before she's so rudely interrupted him.

"Black; if you're actually going to bother putting in some work for this assignment, then I'd suggest you show up here in three days time at noon." She said holding out the third and final piece of parchment for him to take. Steel grey eyes simply stared blankly at her, causing already present anger to stir up even more.

Here she was, going to all this extra trouble to help these three morons pass, and all they could do is act stupid. Letting out an irritated noise in the back of her throat she let the parchment drop to the ground and, after sending him a frosty look, turned and slammed the door once she'd exited the room. Spinning on her heel she stomped away, not seeing the black haired boy casually reach down and retrieve the parchment before pocketing it.


	2. Tricky Meetings

Thanks so much for the nice reviews people. They really made me smile.

Disclaimer: The characters don't belong to me.

Warnings for slight language.

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**Chapter Two – Tricky Meetings**

The café was small and cozy looking. Its sign, 'the Wanderers Café', was slightly dirty but this only served to make the place look even more like it was out of an old fashion film. Taking a deep breath, Remus walked up to the door and pushed it open, a small bell tinkling as he stepped inside. He clutched his bag tighter, nerves getting the better of him as his eyes swept over the many tables and chairs present. Finally, after what felt like an age of looking, he saw her sitting towards the back, almost hidden by a small wall and shrubs. He cautiously approached her booth, hoping that this hadn't all been some kind of awful trick of hers just to make fun of him.

However, when he reached her all he found was the Hogwarts social outcast sitting calmly in her seat, a glass of ice-tea before her and a bored look on her face.

"I was wondering when one of you would turn up," Lily Evans said as her green eyes glanced up to him, met his honey brown ones for a moment, before looking away again.

"No one else is here?" he asked in his usual quiet tone of voice as he took a seat across from her. She opened her mouth to send a smart ass comment back to him about stating the obvious, when she paused to reconsider and sigh.

"No, you're the first here." She said and attempted a small half smile at him.

The bell tinkled again and the two glanced over to see James Potter looking around with a frown on his face, clearly this place wasn't up to his usual standards. Recognition passed over his face at the sight of the two already seated and he made his way over to them and plopped down beside Lily who frowned at him.

"So, are we ready? I have things to actually do this afternoon so could we make this quick?" he asked in a manner which clearly said he wasn't asking them, he was telling them.

"We're not all here yet, in case you hadn't noticed. Is your ego so big you can't see over it anymore?" Lily snapped, dislike clear in her voice.

"What, you don't expect us to wait for Black, do you? Like he'll even turn up," James snorted with laughter and easily ignored her jab at him. A sudden banging of a drink on their table caused all three of them to jump and look up to see Sirius Black standing there, a blank look on his face. Moving, he seated himself beside Remus and a small smirk pulled at the corner of his lips.

"You weren't talking about me, were you Potter?" He asked in a casual drawl, but there was an underlying threat heard by all.

"Course not," James blatantly lied with a slight, dismissive wave of his hand.

Sirius just snorted and took a swing from the bottle before him, then lounged back as if this was all completely normal.

"So, now everyone's here," Lily glanced at James out of the corner of her eye, a slight smile of vindictive amusement flickering to life as the teen rolled his eyes and looked away from the three of them. "Let's work out some things. When do you all want to meet up each week?" Lily continued as if nothing had just passed between her and the boy beside her.

"Easy; each Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday afternoon from 3 – 6pm." Remus said from where he was seated beside Hogwarts' criminal. At the three blank looks he received from the others he felt a brilliant blush staining his cheeks and hurriedly amended his words.

"I mean, if that's ok with you guys…" He trailed off, shifting uncomfortably and training his eyes on the wooden table.

"Well that settles it then; can I go now?" Sirius asked, clearly bored.

"Wait a minute! What if I don't agree to those times?" James argued irritably.

"Then you fail, simple as that." Lily shrugged uncaringly. Clearly she wasn't going to argue with the times if James didn't like them, she got too much satisfaction from James not getting his own way.

Looking clearly annoyed, James rose from his seat.

"Fine, whatever. The less time I have to spend with you social outcasts the better." He went to turn away but Lily, not able to resist the jab, snapped at him.

"Like any of us actually wants to spend time with a dada's boy who only knows how to flaunt his wealth."

"At least I'm not the social reject of the entire school." He hissed back at her.

"Oh, because being the 'prince' of our school is SO much better." Lily snorted. James glared at her angrily for a moment.

"Whatever; I'll leave you with these other pathetic excuses for students." With that he swept out of the café in a huff, beaten at his own game.

"This is going to be an interesting year," Sirius smirked, surprising Remus with the amusement in his voice. He took one last swing of his bottle, put it back onto the table and stood up.

"Clearly we're finished. Lupin, Evans," he nodded slightly to each before turning and casually leaving himself. Lily huffed as she grabbed her bag which had been hidden at her feet and stood as well.

"I'm leaving; I'll see you on Wednesday." With that last pleasantry she too swept away with a flash of red hair.

Remus sat there quietly before sighing and slumping in his seat. Allowing himself to relax finally.

***

Wednesday came all too quickly for the four unwilling group members. They found tempers running high as three of the four waited impatiently for their fourth member to turn up.

"Where the hell is he?" James grumbled for the fifth time in the last half an hour. The time was now 3:30 and one Sirius Black had yet to make an appearance at their designated café.

"Not here obviously," Lily growled back in irritation with a roll of her eyes, a glass of ice-tea once again resting before her.

"Can we please just start?" Remus finally asked, tired of sitting in uncomfortable silence and listening to the duo bickering.

"Lupin's right, let's start. Clearly he's not here so let's get going. He won't get the marks anyway so who cares?" Lily agreed, pulling out some parchment and something to write with. Rolling his eyes and heaving a loud sigh James turned his attention away from the door and over to his two reluctant companions.

"Fine, whatever." Was his only response as they began working on the assignment.

The three had managed to actually work together with minor arguments for an hour when their missing member decided to turn up. He walked up casually to them and it was, unfortunately, James who noticed his presence first.

An arrogant look settled into place and he deliberately relaxed his shoulders as his irritated dark brown eyes settled on the object of his ire's grey ones.

"Well, look who decided to turn up." He drawled. Before Sirius could even send James an answering glare, Lily pounced.

"Where the HELL have you been?!?" She growled furiously.

"Yeah, let's hear your excuse this time." James snorted humorlessly. It was a pity that the first thing they had agreed on was at the expense of another person in their group.

Sirius's grey eyes suddenly flashed with anger and defensiveness.

"Where I go and what I do is none of your bloody business." He growled warningly.

"Yeah, well we'll never get this done if you don't bother turning up, you lazy asshole!" Lily fumed, purposely ignoring his tone.

"Guys-" Remus tried to interject and stop the oncoming argument, but Sirius was too angry to pay him any mind while Lily and James were just plain pissed off.

"Well you know what? You can take this assignment and shove it up your ass Evans, for all I care. As for you Potter, no one really likes you and your arrogance anyway; if it wasn't for your parents you'd just be another number so shove that in your pie-hole and suck it. Screw you lot, I don't give a shit about this assignment anyway." With his piece said and done, Sirius turned and swept out of the café; leaving two furious teens in his wake.

"What a jerk – a prick! Screw him, I hope he fails and gets expelled so I never have to see that ugly-ass face again!" Lily seethed as she shoved their notes into her bag with more force then was strictly necessary.

"I'm leaving. I'll see you both on Friday and make sure you're on time." James stormed off.

"Later," was all Lily offered to Remus who sat quietly in thought, his mind going over what Lily had just said. He knew that things weren't about to get any easier…

***

It was three in the morning when Sirius Black finally managed to drag his slightly drunken ass home to his one room flat in muggle North London. Heaving an irritated sigh he fumbled with his keys for a few minutes before finally getting the door to co-operate with him and open. Closing the said door behind him he carelessly chucked his keys onto a small table near the door and stumbled slightly, headed for the couch.

He was, however, distracted from his goal by a low hooting sound. Looking over into the joint kitchen he saw a tawny owl sitting innocently on the back of the chair, a piece of parchment tied to its leg.

Curiosity gripped him and for a moment he found himself able to think clearly as he carefully removed the burden from the owl. The creature ruffled its feathers, happy at having delivered its message, before giving another low hoot and disappearing out the small kitchen window. Turning his attention back to the letter Sirius opened it and read.

'_Sirius Black,_

_First of all, how are you? As you've not been to any of our meetings for the assignment this past week I'm reduced to asking you such a question in a letter._

_As you might have already guessed, if you've bothered to even read this far; this letter is in regards to our assignment. While I do understand you were probably busy and thus late last Wednesday, it would have been greatly appreciated if you had of sent us word ahead of time so that we didn't worry. That being said, I don't agree that James Potter and Lily Evans should have reacted in such a manner. _

_This leads me to my main reason for writing to you. I'm asking you quite plainly if you would please come back. This has nothing to do with me complaining of having to do more work or anything of that nature. I'm purely asking so as you don't fail this assignment. I'm very serious when I sincerely ask you to come back._

_So – please come back._

_Sincerely, _

_Remus Lupin.'_

Sirius sat in silence as he read and then re-read the other boys letter, double checking that this really was a letter asking him to go back to that group. Finally, with a world-weary sigh, he leaned back into the couch where he had seated himself while reading. He would admit he was quite surprised by Remus' thoughtfulness and his 'olive branch' as it were. Not that he'd ever tell anyone that.

Closing his eyes it only took a few moments before his sleep heavy mind closed down for the night and he fell into the black abyss of sleep, the letter still held loosely in his hand.

***

It took until the following Saturday before Sirius was able to swallow his pride enough to return to 'the Wonderers Café'. He prepared himself for the backlash and smirks he knew would come from at least Lily Evans and James Potter – something told him Remus Lupin wouldn't sink that low – but what he got was a surprise.

James had opened his mouth to comment when Sirius had stopped before their slightly hidden table, but Lily stomped on his foot and his mouth had slammed shut before he could utter a sound. James Potter listening to Lily Evans when she told him to shut up – it seemed miracles did happen after all. Remus offered him a shy, happy smile and moved his bag off the seat beside him so Sirius could sit down.

Once seated Lily had flashed him what could have been called an approving smile before she'd continued talking about the assignment like nothing had happened.

It was then, as they continued working and including him, that Sirius wondered briefly if this is what it felt like to belong somewhere.

***

After that Saturday things seemed to fall into a pattern of sorts. Lily always got there first and ordered her ice-tea which would last her the whole three hours of their sessions. Remus would get there next and spend the time writing out further notes and ideas for their assignment. James and Sirius seemed to arrive at almost the same time as one had a sports car and the other a motorcycle respectably. They had now progressed to civilized conversation with only the occasional insult thrown in.

All in all they were making good progress with their assignment. In fact they were so focused on it that they didn't notice when the beginnings of familiarity started forming among them.

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Please review.


	3. Storms

The next chapter in this story is up! An extra long one as well.

Disclaimer: There characters are not mine.

Enjoy!

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**Chapter Three – Storms**

It was Friday afternoon when the massive storm struck, a torrential downpour accompanied by deafening thunder and blinding lightning. The four had been in the relative safety of the café for the past three hours when, as they were packing up the last of their things, the storm hit.

The radio that normally provided a background noise crackled with sudden urgent voices that advised people to stay inside as there was a severe storm rolling in.

James groaned loudly at the warning.

"Great; it's going to be hell driving home in this." He slumped back into his previously vacated chair. Sirius unconsciously mimicked the slumped stance and let out a groan of his own as Remus nodded in agreement, thinking of how he'd have to trudge home in this weather.

It was Lily who, biting her lip, offered a solution to the dismayed looks on the three boys faces.

"Well, my house isn't far from here… I mean, if you want, you could crash there for the night. Just while it's raining and stuff." She shifted uncomfortably and avoided all three pairs of shocked eyes. Surprisingly it was Remus who answered.

"That'd be great! Thanks, Lily?" He said her name tentatively, the first time he could ever remember saying it to her face. A wide grin blossomed on her lips and that was all the answer he needed to his unspoken question.

"I could do with something closer as well." James spoke up with a very blasé look on his face, though his brown eyes flickered with excitement. Lily looked over to Sirius questioningly.

"Sure," was the supposed criminals' response along with a slight half smile hidden at the corner of his lips.

"Right, well; let's get going then." Lily said, her voice sounding bored, but her green eyes were alight with excitement as well.

Putting away the last of their notes the four moved towards the door, the last barrier between them and the wind and rain outside. Securing her bag and pulling up the hood of her jumper, Lily flashed a nervous grin.

"Follow me," she said before opening the door and taking off at a run towards her house. Without hesitation the three boys followed, hurrying to keep up with her as they tried to avoid the drops.

They ran down a few streets before Lily veered off the walkway and up to one of the many houses lining the road. They stopped beside her as she shoved her keys into the lock before throwing open the front door and hurrying inside.

Once the door had been closed and the entrance halls lights turned on they surveyed the miniature swimming pool they were quickly creating as water fell from their clothing and hair stuck to their faces and scalp. They looked at each other in silence for a moment, awkwardness choking the air around them.

"I'll go grab some towels then," Lily broke the silence as she spun around and ran up the stairs, taking two at a time.

Twenty much dryer minutes later found the four teens in Lily's kitchen, hands cupping streaming mugs of tea and their hair and clothes decidedly dryer. The boys had been handed some baggy pants and shirts that must have belonged to Lily's father and said girl had changed her own clothes as well. James and Remus had each claimed a chair at the small kitchen table while Sirius leant against the counter across from Lily who was seated upon the bench.

"So…" James broke the silence they'd once again fallen into.

"Will your parents care?" He asked, looking over to Lily who frowned.

"Care about what?" She asked, genuine confusion filtering across her face.

"Will they care that you've let three guys you barely know into your kitchen? That they're currently wearing your dad's clothes and all three of them are hormonal teenagers?" James stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Lily surprised them by snorting with laughter.

"No, they won't care. Don't worry; I promise you, you'll not be chucked out into the rain tonight." She said with a bitterly amused smirk twitching at her lips.

"Well, that's comforting." Sirius offered a small smile to the girl before going back to his cup.

They were saved from yet more silence when the phone rang; causing James to look around in confusion as he'd never heard one before.

Lily moved to answer it, depositing her now empty cup on the bench she had been seated on in the process.

"Hello?"

"Lily?" Her mother's distinct voice could be heard through the phone. Frowning Lily pressed on.

"What do you want?"

"We'll not be home tonight. Your father and I have decided that it's just too wet to bother trying to get home. Your sister's spending the night with her boyfriend so you're on your own." Her mother went straight to the point.

"Sure, whatever." Lily sighed, not bothering to inform her mum about the extra three people in the house. She didn't even bat an eye at her mother not being there as she was used to that as well.

"Right, we'll be home tomorrow." Mrs Evans said before the line went dead.

Putting the phone down, Lily turned back to her curious entourage and smiled slightly.

"Well my parents and sister will be out for tonight so it's just us." She shrugged helplessly.

"I'll go get some blankets for you; you can sleep in front of the fire place." She said before turning and disappearing back up stairs again, leaving the guys in an awkward silence once more.

***

Sirius watched from the doorway as social outcast Lily Evans carelessly dumped a massive pile of blankets and pillows on the floor before a nicely lit fire crackled warmly in the hearth. She placed a large jug of orange coloured liquid on the table along with a tray of biscuits. Then she turned and sat herself on the floor as well, pulling a deep green blanket from the pile and draping it over her legs before she began silently staring into the flames. James walked past him and caught his eye, silently asking if they were going to get along tonight or if they were going to be assholes as usual. Offering a weary smile, Sirius backed down from any challenge visible in the brown orbs; something which made James smile at the silently offered truce.

Remus Lupin was the last to enter the room and he did so with a curious look between Sirius and James, a small smile quirking the corner of his lips as he somehow figured out their truce.

Shaking his head slightly so his black hair fell into his eyes in a manner that made him look both incredibly cool and sexy; Sirius followed and sat beside Remus, across from James who was once again beside Lily.

They had all just settled down when a deafening crash of thunder caused them to jump, Remus yelping as Lily screamed and the electric lights flickered and went dark. Heavy breathing and the consistent crackle of the fire were the only sounds to fill the room before Remus suddenly started laughing.

"Oh! My! God! That scared the crap out of me!" He laughed, causing the other three to laugh at their own fright as well.

Just like that the silent and uncomfortable atmosphere was broken and the four companions relaxed.

"Biscuit, anyone?" Lily offered the tray; sticking half of one in her own mouth as she did so. Taking one each the other three bit down and made appreciative noises.

"These are great," Remus complimented once he'd finished swallowing.

"Yeah, shop down the road does the best ones ever," Lily grinned.

"So, is anyone up for a game?" Sirius asked after a moment, pulling a small silver flask from out of nowhere.

There was a beat of silence as every eye locked onto the flask before Lily grinned.

"Sure," she said, grabbing the juice jug and offering it to the teen. After all, everyone in Hogwarts knew how to play truth.

"I'm up for it," James announced, leaning back against the front of the couch casually, brown eyes dancing with excitement again. Sirius glanced up just before he poured the flasks contents into the jug, eyes locking with Remus who had so far remained silent. The boy let out a breath before nodding in consent, a wicked smile springing onto Sirius' face.

Without further ado the innocent juice jug was spiked.

With a mock toast to his companions Sirius took a swing from the jug and grinned at the slight burn of alcohol down his throat. He then offered it to Remus who – with a moment's pause – took it and had a tentative sip. Not finding it too strong he took in a larger gulp before offering it to Lily who wasted no time in gulping some down. Finally James had a turn and without further invitation the night had begun.

***

"That's the thing about being this popular," James explained in a sagely voice an hour later when they were all intoxicated enough to have loosening tongues'. "It's a load of crap! I really hate it. None of those morons actually knows or likes me for me. It's all about my parents being so bloody brilliant. Well, mum's not too bad, but dad's just as bad as the lot of them. Money, power and popularity are all that matters."

"Yeah, my parents' were like that but now they are so consumed by the dark arts it isn't funny. The whole lot of them see me as some kind of blood traitor and have basically disowned me. The minute I was sorted into Gryffindor, poof!" Sirius made a swishy motion with his hands. "I had to move out last summer, couldn't bear to be surrounded by stupid dark wizards and witches any more. Got myself a nice flat in North London." He nodded to himself, the other three nodding along sympathetically.

"It's not too bad here. Just that my family basically ignores anything to do with magic; me included. I think my sister actually hates me; her Neanderthal of a boyfriend doesn't help either. Pair well matched those two. Mum at least acknowledges I exist, but dad's so out of it most of the time I dunno if he's even aware he has another child." Lily sighed heavily and leaned against the front of the couch with James, said boy casually wrapping a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"My family's the complete opposite. Mum's so protective of me I can hardly get out of her sight for more than two seconds. Dad doesn't care much for me; he's always at work so I hardly see him anyway. You wouldn't believe the lengths I had to go to so I could come to the café. She'll probably be having a heart attack that I'm not at home now but," Remus shrugged with a light frown. "I just don't care anymore."

There was a beat of contemplative silence before Sirius leaned over Remus and grabbed one of the four remaining biscuits off the plate.

"A biscuit," he declared grandly, the other four holding up their own like they would for a toast, smiles tugging at their lips.

"To screwed up home lives and the new friends who make them bearable." Sirius grinned at the return smiles as all four touched their biscuits together before shoving them into their mouths.

With laughter and jokes the four talked the night away; the storm outside forgotten as the fire before them kept their bodies warm and the company around them lifted their spirits.

***

It was to the smell of bacon and eggs that James was roused from slumber the next morning. Opening his brown eyes he registered the pile of blankets around him, a scattering of limbs poking out at odd places. Slowly pushing himself up to a sitting position on the ground, he casually pushed off the arm around his stomach and pulled his right foot out from under someone else's leg.

Sunlight filtered through open windows and the sound of fat sizzling in the fry pan could be heard from the kitchen. A quiet groan was heard from beside him and the arm he'd pushed off twitched before moving to push up another body from the depths of the blankets. It turned out it had been Lily beside him all night.

It took some grumbling and groggy groaning before Sirius and Remus were roused – James wasn't sure if he wanted to know how Sirius had ended up half sleeping on top of the slightly smaller boy. As Lily lead them shuffling and blinking owlishly into the kitchen, they were momentarily stumped to find an older woman who looked similar to Lily, at the stove.

"Good morning," she chirped merrily.

Shooting Lily odd looks they replied in kind.

James felt a flash of anger beginning to well up in his gut as betrayal left a bad taste in his mouth. Had Lily been lying last night when she'd said her parents didn't acknowledge her? If not, then who the hell was this woman here? Had she lied in some desperate bid for attention?

"Lily, don't just stand there; introduce me to these boys." The woman demanded.

An indescribable look crossed her face before she answered, in an emotionless voice, the woman who he assumed was her mother.

"This is James Potter, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. They're from my class at school."

Any doubts James had just had about Lily's story were immediately squashed as Mrs Evans' smile dropped off her face. She gave them all a cold look before turning back to Lily.

"Feed them. Then get rid of them. " She said tartly before swaggering out of the room. A silence lingered in the kitchen as she exited; before Lily moved over to the stove and began to tend to the bacon and eggs her mother had abandoned.

"So… who wants eggs?" She asked simply.

***

"Remus! Where have you been all night?" A shrill female voice called out as soon as said boy set foot into his house. The brown eyed boy sighed slightly as his rumpled looking mother stood in front of him, arms crossed across her chest and a furiously worried look on her face.

"Sorry Ma, it was raining so hard last night that it was just easier to stay at a friend's house." He said simply, hoping she wouldn't make a big deal out of it like she always did. Today, fate was not on his side and he found himself blocked from going any further into the house by the thin woman.

"If the weather was so bad you should have left early or something. When I agreed to you going out to these study sessions I only did it because you said it was for such an important assignment; I did not do this to allow you to go out and do stupid things at night with strangers!" Her voice was slowly but surely increasing in volume as she continued her rant.

"What if someone found out? Then what would we do?" She asked, anger tinting her voice as well as the hurt of an anguished parent, believing that her son didn't care what would happen to his very own mother if someone found out about his problem.

Mother and son stood staring at one another for a moment of silence before she let out a loud sigh and her hands fell away from her hips. The angry stance abandoned as a sad look crossed her face.

"Oh, Remus," she whispered, tears now shinning in her eyes as she pulled the boy into her arms and held onto him tightly as only a mothers hug can do.

"I know you just want to be normal, but you're not honey. The sooner you accept that you'll always be different and that as such you need to stay away from the rest of the world so that no one will ever find out, the better." She said it all with a comforting tone to her voice, as though she was speaking to a 5-year-old who had scraped his knees. Remus, however, felt his anger beginning to boil.

She always did this, every single time he did something that she didn't agree with; she would come out with the exact same speech. She would sound all supportive and just like a worried mother, but the words she used were aimed at hurting and crushing him. Everything she said contradicted everything she did!

Pulling back he looked into her eyes, his own angry, yet her own brown eyes were always his undoing. He could see the pain and humiliation she had for having a son such as he. The hurt that they would never be a normal family because of what he was. Anger that her life had turned out this way. But most of all, he could see fear. She feared him so very much; it was the only thing that stopped her from screaming and raging at him about how it was always his fault.

Yet she needn't have bothered worrying about saying it out loud, he could see it every time she looked at him.

It hurt…

"I'm sorry Ma, I promise to tell you what's going on next time." He said, the anger draining out of him quickly and replacing itself with guilt and sorrow.

"Well maybe you should just stop this study group thing. I'm sure you don't need anyone else's help with school!" She said, an expectant look on her face.

"What?" He asked, a sinking feeling rushing in his stomach.

"Just quit the study group and things can go back to how they always were sweetheart. Just you around the house with me during the holidays; it'll be perfect." She said with a large false smile in place on her face.

"No, ma I can't just quit." He said, pulling right away from her now as he watched the smile on her face become stale before slipping off completely.

"Remus, I really think you should stop it with this silly thing. You've been acting strange ever since you started it and I don't like it." She said, a note of sternness in her voice.

"Ma I'm sorry. I'd do mostly anything for you but I won't quit my study group just because you want me to. It's not hurting me in any way and I'm learning loads." He said, trying to be reasonable about it as anger and panic began a game of tug-of-war in his stomach; kicking out any guilt he had just experienced.

"Remus-"

"No, I'm sorry Ma, I really am. But I'm not going to stop going." He said firmly, a sense of determination taking hold in his heart.

Ignoring the shocked look on his mothers face as she gapped at the boy who had never before refused her in such a way; Remus brushed past her and headed towards his room. A mixed feeling of satisfaction and guilt working its way into his heart as he headed to get ready for the day ahead at the café.

***

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	4. Toad Counter Boy

Wow; thank you to everyone who took the time to review this story, it really makes me want to up-date more quickly!

Disclaimer: Not my characters.

Enjoy!

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Chapter Four – Toad Counter Boy

It was a few days later at the end of their session at the café, when Sirius found the courage to finally open his mouth. He had decided that morning through a relatively comfortable silence that he was going to do this.

"So… what are you guys up to tonight?" He asked, leaning back casually, moving his arm behind Remus on the back of the chair. He pushed down the rising nerves at both what he was going to ask and the feel of the smaller boy next to him.

It was a round of shrugged shoulders and curious eyes that answered his question.

"Well, its Saturday night, so I'm going down town for a spot of clubbing," seeing the interest light up their eyes he relaxed marginally and let a smirk creep across his face.

"I don't suppose any of you'd be interested?" He drawled, before letting a wicked grin cross his features at the eager and anticipating looks his offer received.

That was how Lily Evans found herself in the company of three young men as they headed towards what she assumed was a muggle club if the multi-coloured lights slipping through the closed doors was anything to go by.

Getting out of James' car, she blindly followed Sirius and Remus – the later having ridden Sirius' motorbike with him – as the boys skipped the large line waiting to enter the club and, rather boldly she believed, walked right up to the intimidating looking bouncer.

"Yo, Jo!" Sirius raised a hand in casual greeting, as though this was completely normal. The bouncer looked over to him and a sudden grin flashed across his face.

"Sirius – my man." The larger man said as he right away moved to open the door.

"Good to see you. I'll come have a chat later. These are my mates; James, Remus and Lily." Sirius casually pointed to them, causing uncertain smiles to lift their lips.

"That's a first. Never met any of Sirius' mates before. Names Jo; you're friends of his so any time you're here I'll let you in. Just as long as you come say hello at some stage." He winked as Sirius laughed and then lead the other three into the club.

The first thing Lily noticed upon entering the place was the almost deafening volume of the music. The second was the continuous changing of the lights – green, blue, red, white and then suddenly everything went black before she was blinded by lights again. The third was the smokiness of the place, there was definitely a light layer of smoke surrounding everything – probably coming from a smoke machine somewhere near the DJ on a small raised platform. She allowed her eyes to trail curiously over all the bodies brushing up against one another around the packed dance floor. The bar off to one side was full of loud, boisterous people drinking and hitting on one another. Then there were all the people snogging one another senseless, she doubted that some of them were going to stop before they very publicly displayed their anatomy to the rest of the clubs population.

She was knocked out of her observations as someone roughly brushed past her, causing her to stumble and a hand to shoot out and steady her. Looking up, she saw dark brown orbs looking worriedly down at her. Grinning to reassure James – as she wasn't sure he would be able to hear her over the volume of the music – they continued pushing their way through the tightly packed crowd after Sirius and Remus.

Sirius – apparently – also knew the bartender as well for as soon as they'd gotten a spot at the bar four drinks appeared before them. Not wishing to look a gift horse in the mouth, Lily took the drink and had a sip; delighting in the warmth that pooled in her belly at the taste.

"Have some of this!" Sirius suddenly yelled to be heard over the music; holding out a small flask similar to the one from the night of the storm.

"What is it?" James called back.

"It'll prevent a hangover in the morning. There was some mixed in last time as well." Sirius explained when Remus opened his mouth.

'_Well that explains the mystery of the missing hangover that morning.'_ Lily thought idly as Remus took a gulp from the flask before offering it to her, without any hesitation she too took a gulp. As she swallowed a thought occurred to her. A month ago, if someone had said that she would be hanging around with these three guys of her own free will, and in public, she would have called them crazy. She was even blindly drinking something one of them had given her and she had no trace of doubt in her mind that it wasn't poison or something to hurt her. These thoughts just served to astound her.

Hell, a month ago if someone had told her she would be voluntarily spending her free time over summer with the king of popularity, Hogwarts resident criminal and the Gryffindor bookworm; she would have laughed herself silly before recommending they take a prolonged stay at St Mungos. Now however, Lily Evans felt the faint stirrings of friendship; something she hadn't felt since before Hogwarts.

Passing the flask to James he too took a gulp before offering it back to Sirius who put it away again. He took a large drink of his glass before grinning and grabbing both Remus' hand in his free one.

"Have fun kids," he toasted them mockingly before disappearing into the crowd of sweaty bodies with a surprised Remus Lupin in tow.

Lily sat blankly for a moment before turning to James who looked just as miffed as she felt.

"He's a weird one." James shook his head.

"Yeah, but he's fun too." She grinned, causing James to do so as well.

***

It had been hours since they'd first arrived at the club and Lily found herself thoroughly enjoying herself. She had only caught a few glimpses of Sirius and Remus on the dance floor, cheeks flushed with alcohol and excitement. If she hadn't of been drinking she would have suspected that there was more between the two than a tentative friendship.

There had only been one moment of discomfort for her when a guy – who was clearly off his face and 20 years her senior – had been heavily hitting on her. As she had stood, racking her brain to come up with a good enough reason for him to bugger off for good, she'd found she needn't have worried. In a surprisingly gentlemanly manner – similar to that of an overprotective boyfriend – James had slung an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. With protective vibes rolling off him in waves, he had calmly told the interloper that she had company and for him to kindly leave before he punched his head in. Obviously acknowledging James as a threat the guy had sighed and pushed off in defeat; leaving them in peace.

As Lily glanced up at James beneath her lashes, she felt affection fill her before clearing her throat and grabbing her glass again. Hiding her smile behind the glasses' rim, she hoped James didn't notice any time soon that his arm was still casually around her shoulders.

***

Shifting uncomfortably Remus once again glanced at Sirius; feeling his cheeks flush slightly under the heavy silver eyed stare. As soon as his companion had gotten them alone he had casually asked to dance with him. Being who he was, Remus' first instinct was to refuse – insisting that he didn't know how to do so. Sirius, apparently, was very persistent and half an hour later found the two laughing and having fun on the designated dance floor.

Remus had found himself doing more and more things he'd previously thought he'd never be fortunate enough to experience lately. This strange study group of theirs was the most interesting mix of people he'd ever had the pleasure of being in the company of. He had never thought he would go to a party, let alone a night club; and he'd resigned himself to only having slept in his own bed and on the dorms at Hogwarts. Yet he'd now slept at another's house – a girls' at that! While he acknowledged that he sounded like some thirteen-year-old when he thought things like that, he found himself not caring.

Allowing himself another chance look, Remus once again found his honey coloured eyes connecting with silver ones and heat radiated off his face. Gathering his courage he turned to fully face the slightly taller boy who had spent the majority of their time alone tonight just staring at him.

"What?"

"Nothing," Sirius glanced away for a second before looking back at him, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he did so.

"Why are you staring at me?" Remus all but yelled, trying to make himself heard over the pounding music and general noise of the place.

Sirius let a wicked grin show before suddenly leaning in close to him. He could feel Sirius' warm breath washing over his ear as he spoke in a strange voice.

"I like what I see is all."

Pulling back Remus felt himself heat up so much he was sure he could have fried an egg on his forehead with no trouble at all.

"Come on, let's find the others. This place will be closing soon and I dunno about you, but I could go for something to eat." Sirius yelled in a casual voice, as if he hadn't just done something really strange.

Nodding numbly, Remus allowed Sirius to take his hand and weave them through the crowds; his mind completely focused on the warmth of the other hand clasped tightly in his own.

***

Pushing away any embarrassment he felt and hiding it under a mask of cool confidence, Sirius managed to get all three of his new friends out of the club and onto the streets where they could see the street lights were still shining brightly. Checking her watch Lily confirmed that it was only four in the morning.

"I'm hungry," Sirius said, breaking the reluctance silence that had swallowed them all.

"Me too… want to go somewhere for an early breakfast?" James pounced on the idea. Despite his black rimmed glasses, Sirius could see the longing not to return home swimming in his dark brown eyes.

"Now that you mention it, I could go for something like fast food." Lily said thoughtfully, a slight smile hidden at the corner of her lips.

"Yeah, that sounds good," Remus' shy smile caused Sirius' stomach to almost flip completely over.

"Well, James and Lily can follow me in his car. Remus you can ride with me again." Sirius sent the brunette a winning grin and had to almost restrain himself from jumping for joy at the sight of Remus' agreeing nod.

So, without further ado, Sirius climbed upon his motorbike and offered the spare helmet to Remus who accepted it tentatively. Glancing over to James' sports car to make sure the other two were ready; Sirius found himself having to once again stop himself from doing something stupid at the feel of Remus' hands resting lightly on his hips.

"You're going to have to hold on tighter than that if you don't want to fall off." Sirius called back cheekily and, before waiting for a reply, he started the engine and they were off. He allowed himself but a moment to savor the feel of Remus; arms wrapped tightly around his middle as his chest was pushed against Sirius' back. The moment saved in his memory, he began to concentrate on the road ahead; looking over occasionally to make sure James was still following them.

Arriving at a fast food joint the two teens climbed off Sirius' bike as Lily and James emerged from his sports car, laughing and joking with one another like they had been friends for years.

"She was trying to be so conspicuous about it but she was totally checking you out!" Lily giggled as James let out a loud groan and momentarily covered his face with a hand.

"Tell me you're joking," he moaned.

"Nope! She's totally into you." Lily grinned mischievously as they reached the other two.

"Who likes him?" Remus spoke up from beside Sirius, an eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"Rebecca Rosbrow." Lily said in a far too delighted voice to be even the slightest bit sympathetic to James who let out another groan and playfully glared at her.

"Do you have to keep saying her name?" He asked indigently.

Lily, however, didn't reply and just giggled, something she seemed to be doing more and more recently Sirius noticed, before she lead them into the place.

It was the stereotypical fast food joint; the only people working at this hour were the teenagers who were desperate for money. The place was relatively clean and many plastic chairs and tables filled the room, large bins tucked away in corners and trays stacked on top of them. Behind the counter a guy was slumped, his face resembling a pizza and his drooping eye lids only seemed to accentuate the almost purple circles underneath them.

Bounding over to him with far too much energy for four in the morning, Lily 'hmmed' as she read the signs displaying colourful pictures of what the food supposedly looked like.

"What do you guys think?" She asked, looking back at the other three with a slightly tilted head and mild interest in her eyes.

"Well, just get some chips and a burger or something for me." James shrugged, decidedly more interested in the small microphones set up on the counter for the staff to talk into when taking orders, than what he was actually going to be eating.

"Yeah, that sounds good only I'll have a coke as well." Remus said, eyes skimming over the menus.

Lily looked over to Sirius who flashed her a grin.

"Same for me thanks."

Nodding she turned back to the muggle who looked almost dazed that someone was actually here at this time in the morning.

"Ok I'll have four chips and three burgers along with two cokes and a lemonade." She said, eyes still on the menu incase she noticed something better while ordering.

The guy fumbled around for a moment with buttons before nodding his head and clearing his voice.

"So that's three chips, a burger and two lemonades." He asked in a squeaky sounding voice, obviously breaking on three words.

There was a beat of silence in which the four looked at him blankly for a moment before Lily shook her head.

"No, I said four chips, three burgers, two cokes and a lemonade." She said in a clear voice.

Blushing a brilliant red, the teen quickly began taping buttons again, attempting to correct the mistake.

"Four chips, a coke, lemonade and three burgers." He read off the screen.

Another beat of silence filled the room before Lily sighed loudly.

"No, I said four chips, three burgers, two cokes and a lemonade." Irritation was beginning to seep into her voice now. Glancing at the other two Sirius noticed identical smirks beginning to pull at all three of their lips as they watched the inept server trying to correct the order again as Lily got steadily more irritated.

"Ok, so that was four chips, three burgers, two cokes and a sprite." He said in a flustered voice.

Lily suddenly let out an angry sounding noise and stomped her foot in frustration.

However, before she could strangle him over the counter as Sirius was sure she was about to do, Remus saved the day by coming up to her side and speaking in a clam, soothing voice.

"No sprite thanks, a lemonade instead." He said as he laid a calming hand on Lily's shoulder as Sirius and James snickered behind them.

The boy sent Remus a thankful look before punching a few more buttons.

"Ok, so it's four chips, three burgers, two cokes, a lemonade and a sprite." He said, sounding incredibly pleased with himself. It was this that sent Sirius and James over the edge and they burst into laughter, having to lean on one another so as to not fall over.

Remus let out a sigh as Lily made that annoyed sound again before he nodded.

"Yes, that's right." He agreed, too exhausted by the stupidity of the guy before him to argue any further.

"Right, we'll call you when your order's ready if you'd just take a seat," he said before turning and disappearing through a side door to the kitchen behind.

Lily turned around and shot Sirius and James an annoyed glare each.

"Come on, let's find a seat." Remus said content for the moment to play the mediator.

Walking towards the plastic booths the four seated themselves down, James and Sirius on one side with Remus and Lily on the other, the later as Lily refused to sit beside either of the 'idiot duo' as she referred to them.

"I don't think I've ever met someone so dumb," James sniggered next to Sirius, causing the later to crack up again.

"OW!" James suddenly yelped, jumping in his seat and his head snapped over to Lily who was suddenly looking far too innocent for her own good.

"What?" She said airily as she looked vaguely around the place.

"What'd you kick me for?" James cried, leaning over and rubbing his shin tenderly.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." She let a smirk tug at the corner of her lips as the boy next to Sirius muttered curses under his breath.

"So, anyway." Remus cleared his throat.

"Who's Rebecca Rosbrow?" Sirius suddenly asked, remember the conversation from before. An almost evil smile lit up Lily's face at the name as James once again groaned and Remus smiled lightly.

"She's this absolute bitch in Hufflepuff who's such a slag it's not funny. You know she once tried to accuse me of stealing this necklace she always wears. Gods, did she regret that!" Lily crowed happily, clearly satisfied with whatever vengeance she had enacted upon the poor girl.

"What'd you do to her?" Remus asked, looking slightly surprised by the enthusiasm in her voice.

"Oh, let's just say she was unable to meet her regular boys for a month." Was all the red head said and, just by the way she'd smiled evilly, Sirius suddenly found himself not wanting to know.

'_Memo to self, do not ever get on the wrong side of this girl.'_

"Excuse me!" A croaky voice suddenly called across the otherwise silent joint. All four heads turned in the direction of the dim-witted teen behind the counter who now had a tray resting before him.

"You're food's ready." He said and un-necessarily pointed to the food.

Rolling his eyes, James rose from their table and moved across the room. Grabbing the tray with a slight nod of the head to the boy, he turned and quickly walked back to the table.

"Here ya go," he said, flashily presenting the tray with their food and drink.

With a rolling of their eyes the other three grabbed their meals as James sat back down again. They were silent for a moment before Lily suddenly let out that annoyed sound once more. Looking up, Sirius saw her peering under the lid of her drink with a scowl on her face. She quickly replaced the lid and picked up another drink and took a look; she repeated this to all four drinks before huffing angrily.

"What?" Remus asked, looking at her odd behavior in complete confusion.

"That stupid little toad messed it up!" She hissed, sending the oblivious teen a venomous glare.

"Messed what up?" Sirius looked at her curiously.

"He gave us all sprites!" She suddenly cried out, like it was the worst thing to have ever happened in the history of the world.

The three boys looked at her blankly before sending each other cautious looks, lips twitching madly until Remus cracked up. Laughing loudly they ignored Lily's huff as she simply picked up a chip and took a vicious bite out of it.

"Stupid boys," she mumbled, only succeeding in setting them off even more. Sirius noted with high amusement that the teen behind the counter was giving them a weird look, Lily in particular, a bit like he thought they were about to go insane on him at any moment. Catching his eyes, Sirius couldn't resist giving him a wink, causing him to let out a squeak that echoed around the empty room before he took off and disappeared through the door to the kitchen again.

***

Lily sighed happily as she chewed her last chip, hand resting on her now full stomach in satisfaction.

"Hmm… I love food," she let out a large smile as she glanced at the three boys who all rolled their eyes at her. They had finished ages ago and had been sitting here, waiting for her to be done. As a sort of amusement she had taken to commenting on each individual bite she took, continually mentioning how good it was and how much she liked the food. They had thought it was funny until they realized how long she was going to draw this out for. As for the drinks the 'toad counter boy' had supplied them with, well Sirius and James had drunk two each and left nothing for Remus or her, not that either of them had been planning on drinking the putrid stuff otherwise known as Sprite!

"Oh, are you ready to go now?" James asked sarcastically.

"Yeah, don't rush on our account." Sirius added with a roll of his eyes.

"You two are so whiney! Why can't you just wait patiently like Remus here?" She pouted, her playfulness once again taking hold of her. She didn't know what was happening to her except that before these past few weeks, tonight in particular, she's never been so happy and willing to embarrass herself just to get others to laugh. It was terrifying and yet at the same time thrilling!

Slowly the four rose to their feet, picking up their rubbish and depositing it all in the bins located next to the doors. Waving merrily at the still bemused 'toad counter boy', they exited the joint and stood stupidly for a moment on the side walk before their rides.

"There's this beach," Lily began, catching everyone's attention. "It's about a fifteen minute ride away from here and it would be perfect for seeing the sun rise…" She blushed slightly and looked down nervously, waiting for them to reject her unsaid suggestion.

"You know I don't even remember the last time I was awake early enough to see the sun rise," James said slowly as he started heading for his car.

"Yeah, how about you lead and we'll follow behind." Sirius said, smiling encouragingly at Lily who grinned happily.

"Sure!" She said, moving over to the passenger side of James' car one again. When they were all ready Lily began directing James where to go, laughing each time Sirius would speed up and ride beside her window, Remus tapping on the glass to get her attention and making James yell at them to be careful not to scratch his car.

As predicted they arrived 15 minutes later at the pebble covered English beach, the sky graying with the rising sun. They stood in silent serenity, eyes trained on the lightening sky over the waters as the sun's golden rays slowly peaked over the horizon and greeted the new day with warmth and promise.

"It's beautiful," Lily whispered as she looked at the sight.

"Yeah," the other three breathed out, comfort and hope filling them for the first time in years.

"Come on!" James suddenly yelled, grabbing Lily's arm and dragging her towards the cold waters.

"NO!" She shrieked, laughing as she tried to get away from him. She let out a loud squeal when both Remus and Sirius grabbed her too.

The sounds of laughter and shouting could be heard in the early hours of the morning as the four friends enjoyed themselves on the pebbled shores.

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	5. Furry Secrets

Hello Everyone, Sorry it's taken me so long to up-date!

Well here's the next part. Not too many chapters left to go now. Oh, and for anyone who didn't particularly like the idea of gay-ism in this story, don't worry, the late chapter was the only one with any real inclinations towards it. The rest of the fic doesn't have much to do with any building romantic relationships.

Thanks so much to the people who took the time to review!

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters.

Enjoy!

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**Chapter Five - Furry Secrets**

Wednesday found three distracted teenagers seated in their customary seats in the 'Wanderers Café'. Each had received an owl yesterday from their fourth member, saying that he was ill and unable to come. This was the first time since the first few weeks that one of their number had been absent. The others had arrived and attempted to work on their assignment, but had found their attention frequently wavering. Finally they had lapsed into silence, the parchment before them forgotten.

"We could just go visit him?" Lily finally suggested.

"Yeah; he's sick. It's the right thing to do." James sat up a bit straighter.

"Ok, let's go now. It's not like we were getting anything done anyway." Sirius said standing up as Lily swept everything carelessly into her bag.

They left in James' car, not really talking as they road off towards their missing members house.

When they arrived at Remus' house, it was Sirius who was out of the car first. James and Lily followed quickly, all eager to see their friend and make sure he was ok. They trooped up a small pathway to the front door when, just as Sirius was about to knock, yelling sounded from within.

"WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!" A male voice yelled, sounding furious. The three teens froze as muttering followed the sudden outburst.

"IT'S A MONSTER! HOW CAN YOU DEFEND SUCH A VILE CREATURE? IT-"

"THAT SO-CALLED MONSTER IS OUR SON!" A female voice suddenly countered.

"NO, MY SON DIED THE DAY THAT WEREWOLF WAS BORN!"

There was the sudden sound of china shattering followed by cursing.

"HOW CAN YOU BE SO CRUEL? REMUS NEEDS OUR LOVE AND PROTECTION!"

"NO, THE WORLD NEEDS PROTECTION FROM THAT CREATURE!"

"HE'S JUST A BOY!"

"WHY CAN'T YOU SEE? REMUS IS DEAD! ALL THAT'S LEFT IS THAT WEREWOLF THAT HAS INFECTED HIM. REMUS DIED YEARS AGO, YOU NEED TO ACCEPT THAT AND STOP CLINGING TO THE FALSE HOPE OF A CURE!"

The three unnoticed teens slowly backed away from the door and returned to the car. The same thought flying around their spinning heads:

'_How could sweet, innocent, bookworm Remus Lupin be a werewolf?'_

***

Remus opened the door to the 'Wanderers Café' with a small smile. His eyes swept the room before landing happily on the table almost hidden by a small wall and shrubs. Slight surprise flittered across his face at the sight of all three of his friends already there as normally only Lily would be there this early. Figuring he must be slightly late, Remus moved towards them and offered a friendly smile and greeting as he seated himself in his customary seat besides Sirius and across from Lily.

It was the slight hesitation and the sadly tinged replies he received that alerted him to the first of the warning bells in his head.

"So, er… how's it going?" He asked, his body instinctively tensing.

"Good," James offered when no one else moved to reply.

"Remus, we're going back to my place for the night. Why don't you come with us?" Sirius finally spoke up after a period of silence.

Immediately the warning bells in Remus' head went off again, louder than before. Something wasn't right and it was obviously centered around him. His first instinct was to decline the offer and make up some lame excuse of still not feeling well and fleeing. He was just about to do so when a voice in the back of his head whispered.

'_Take a chance'_

Against all his better judgment, Remus found himself nodding in agreement before he could think any further on the matter.

The other three looked satisfied with this answer and without further ado they went to explaining the part of the assignment that he'd missed. However a guarded and less comfortable air surrounded them the whole while.

It turned out that Sirius lived in a small flat with one bedroom, one bathroom and a combined kitchen/lounge room. It wasn't much, but it was all Sirius's which was what counted. They were let into the flat before being casually directed by Sirius to take a seat on the small couch and two old armchairs.

Finally, once everyone was settled and an uncomfortable silence had settled over them, James turned to Remus.

"We know you're a werewolf." He stated bluntly.

Remus had always dreaded the day someone found out his biggest secret. He'd had nightmares about people with pitchforks and demands to have the 'foul beast' burned alive. He was sure he would plead for people to understand that there really was nothing he could have done about being what he was and that he'd never come near them again. He'd do anything for them not to tell anyone about his secret.

So, understandably, it came as a bit of a shock to himself when the only thought that passed through his head at James' words was:

'_How tactless'_

"James, you prat!" Lily hit him on the arm with an angry flush staining her cheeks; apparently thinking the same as Remus' thoughts of tactless teenagers.

Sad green eyes looked over to Remus and he involuntarily cringed when she took a step towards him. She let out a strange, strangled noise in the back of her throat before moving towards him quickly. He instinctively clamped his eyes shut as he raised his arms in a feeble attempt to protect himself from what he perceived as an attack.

However, two gentle arms around his middle and a head resting on his chest, was not what he had been expecting. Lily had slipped her arms through his arms and was holding him close as she shook.

"I-it's ok that you're different." She sobbed openly, voice choking on words as she spoke.

Shock flooded him as he slowly moved his arms to hold her close. Disbelief and numbness was all he could feel as memories surfaced. Visions of his mother telling him time and time again that he could never tell anyone, that no one would ever accept him if they knew the horrible truth. That he would be ostracized for the rest of his life should anyone ever know.

"But, I'm a monster," he said quietly, unable to comprehend the sympathy the small girl in his arms was so willingly offering.

"Y-you're not, not a monster, Remus!" She continued to sob.

He looked blankly over the top of her red hair at the other two occupants of the room.

"Lily's right, Remus. So you turn into a wolf once a month; it doesn't change who you are," Sirius moved forward and, with not a second's hesitation, leaned down and joined in the hug. Blurry honey brown eyes locked onto dark brown ones.

"They're right. You're still you and no stupid curse is going to change that fact." James agreed before he too moved forward and joined their now group hug.

Remus stood in stunned silence for a while as Lily continued to sob and the other two boys just held them grounded. It was Sirius pulling back slightly to wipe away tears trailing unashamedly down his own cheeks that caused Remus to realize he had been weeping as well.

Just like that – with such an innocent gesture – the full magnitude of what was happening hit him and Remus tightened his arms around Lily. Burying his face in her hair he allowed his emotions to let go.

"Thank you… thank you – so much." He whispered over and over again.

***

Half an hour later found them seated comfortably with butter bears and pumpkin pastries between them.

"So; Sirius, it's not true, is it? You know, all the rumors of you being some juvenile delinquent who's really a criminal." Lily asked with raised eye brows. Sirius let out a snort of laughter and took a swing of his drink before replying.

"If I was a criminal I'd be in Azkaban. All I did was not fit in with everyone's ideas of who I should be. My family wanted me in Slytherin where I could study the darker branches of magic unnoticed." He rolled his eyes and heaved a heavy sounding sigh.

"Well, I'm in Gryffindor so that plan went down the drain. Then, when I told my parents I couldn't care less about some crazy madman who wants to rule the world and kill everyone off; well you can imagine that didn't go down well. There's also my cousins and brother spreading all kinds of rumors about me being some seriously dangerous being who'll kill anyone stupid enough to even look at me funny."

Sirius snorted again and leaned back more into the couch, looking for all the world like he couldn't care less about any of it. However, the three were becoming close enough to pick up on his body language and understand that he wasn't as flippant about what happens as he would've liked to have made them believe.

"Must be lonely, all by yourself," Remus said quietly.

"I'd imagine you're pretty alone as well. Everyone only sees you as a bookworm." Sirius said in a not unpleasant way, more like simply pointing out that there was a bit of dragon dung on ones shoe.

"Oh I know that. People only acknowledge I actually exist when they need help with their homework or a good partner for class." Remus said, a bitter smile crossing his lips.

"You have it pretty good though, don't you James?" Lily suddenly spoke up, eyes having been full of sympathy for the two on the couch.

"I don't actually have any real friends; just people pretending to be nice to me so that they can suck up to my parents through me." He shrugged like it didn't matter, but they could all hear the anger and hurt tingeing his voice.

"Yeah, well at least you've got people willing to talk to you without throwing in an insult every second word. Hell, I have to pick fights with people all the time just so I don't go insane from the constant silence." Lily laughed bitterly.

There was a moment of contemplative silence before Remus grinned ruefully.

"We're a sad lot aren't we? A supposed criminal who just wants to be himself; a guy so popular no one actually knows him; a social outcast who's longing for someone to simply talk to her; and a bookworm werewolf that's put into storage until someone needs help with their homework." He let out another humorless laugh as the other three grinned.

"Yes, definitely a sad and screwed up lot," Sirius echoed before laughing himself.

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	6. As Good as it Gets

Sorry for such as long delay!

Here's the next part, a little small...

Disclaimer: Character's aren't mine.

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**Chapter six – As Good as it Gets**

"James, where are you going?"

James paused with his hand on the front door handle. He looked behind him to see his mother standing there, a book held casually at her side and her brown eyes, just like his, filled with curiosity. Looking at the two one wouldn't believe they were related until they saw their eyes as Sally Potter had dark red hair that was now slowly graying, her features were delicate and she always looked like some kind of model just out of a photo shoot. James however, was scruffier looking and his black hair was constantly a mess. Their eyes, however, were exactly the same deep brown colour.

"I have a meeting for my assignment today, just like I have had on this day all summer." He said simply, knowing it was indeed possible for neither of his parents to have noticed despite him having been doing so for almost two months now. They had a very busy life that was full of important people and making important decisions. James himself was only needed for functions where his father wanted to show him of as the heir of the Potter line.

"Oh, well don't be home too late. We need to start going over the invitation list for the end of summer party." She smiled slightly at him. James however, was shocked to realize that the summer had flown by so quickly!

"Ok… Would I be able to invite my group members?" He asked as inspiration struck. Having Sirius, Remus and Lily around would make the night so much more bearable.

"Who are they dear?" She asked with a warm smile.

"Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Lily Evans," James said before he thought about it. It was only once the words were out of his mouth and he could see the confused look on his mothers' face that he realized a definite problem in his little plan.

His father always insisted on inviting all the wealthy people in the wizarding and muggle world. It was his way of showing everyone the prominence of the Potter family as well as renewing all acquaintances that might just come in handy one day. If his father could be said to be anything at all it was a fine networker.

"I don't recognize any of those names James. You know how your father likes to have only the elite of society at this party." She said; a gentle look on her face as if she was explaining to a very young child that Santa Clause wasn't real.

Thinking fast James said the first thing that came to mind.

"But it would be really good research for our assignment!" He said quickly and a bit more forcefully than he had intended.

He watched the conflict in his mothers brown eyes for a moment before she offered him another small smile.

"I suppose if it's for school then it will be alright."

Sagging slightly in relief he offered her the same small smile before turning back to the door.

"Thanks mum." He called casually over his shoulder.

"James!" She called him back, making him look around as he was now half out the door.

"Be careful around these new people. You don't want to do something you'll regret later." The concern and caution in her voice only served to irritate him. Here was his very own mother telling him not to be friends with his group members just because she didn't recognize their last names.

"I'll keep it in mind." He said frostily, a frown on his face as he continued out the door and ignored the sigh from his mother as he shut the wooden panel with a little bit too much force.

'_Stupid shallow people,'_ he grumbled to himself as he headed over to his car. He didn't care what they thought about him anymore; it was his life and he was sick of following their rules.

***

It wasn't until a few days later, when James announced his families' annual end of holiday party that they always held at their mansion, that they all realized that they only had a week left before holidays would be over. A week before they would have to return to school. A week before the harsh realities of life hit them once again.

With mixed feeling, James invited the three to the party – insisting that it would help them finish up the last part of the assignment by watching how all the wealthy wizarding folk used etiquette.

Smiling a little apprehensively at what people would say to them being there, the three agreed after James had practically begged them to come so he might have people there that were not only worth talking to but that he wanted to talk to.

It was two nights later that Lily found herself standing in front of a mirror in her room, scrutinizing the blue dress she wore. Spinning around before the reflective surface she huffed a little.

"Well this is about as good as it gets." She forced a small smile before tucking a lose strand of hair behind her ear absentmindedly. She was distracted from her reflection by the honking of a car horn. Going over to her window she saw Sirius and Remus sitting in a car she recognized as James'.

"Must have stolen his car." She murmured to herself as a real smile quirked her lips. Turning, she grabbed her purse off the vanity before sweeping out of her room and down the stairs, heading for the front door.

"Where do you think you're going?" A sudden sneering voice came from the kitchen doorway. Lily looked around, surprised to see her sister standing there and looking at her.

"Out." She said simply, going to pulled open the front door.

"You're pretty dressed up." Her sister continued, moving slighting towards her, curiosity burning in her blue eyes.

Rolling her own eyes Lily heaved a sigh before turning to the older girl and frowning.

"If you really must know, I've been invited to a dinner party at a friend's house." The word friend felt foreign on her tongue but left her with butterflies in her stomach.

"Friend?" Petunia seemed to find the word hilarious because she laughed in an obnoxiously loud manner.

"You don't have any friend's." She continued, hand rising to her mouth in an imitation of proprietary.

"Yes I do." Lily snapped back, face flushing in embarrassment.

"Oh I'm sure they're just putting up with you until you give them what they want." She smirked nastily. "Then they'll drop you like the shameless freak you are."

Hurt and angry, Lily did the only thing she knew to do in such a situation. Lifting her head high with false pride she glared angrily at her sister.

"Just because you'll do anything for people to like you doesn't mean I will as well. They're my friend's because they want to be." With that she turned and opened to the door, walked out and slammed it shut behind her on Petunia's gaping face.

Walking over to the car she opened the back seat before sliding in.

"Hey Lily, ready for the boringest party on earth to begin?" Sirius asked, looking back at her in the review mirror.

"Yeah sure, bring on the boredom." She laughed, buckling up her seatbelt.

"It's not going to be that bad." Remus sighed, and Lily smirked as she knew that Sirius must have been going on about how bad tonight was going to be ever since he'd picked the werewolf up.

"Yeah you tell me that after an hour of it." Sirius snorted as he pulled away from the curve.

"So how is it you have James' car? Wasn't your bike cool enough anymore?" Lily teased the black haired boy in front of her.

"Are you kidding me? My bike is the coolest thing I've ever owned!" Sirius said passionately.

"James told him to use the car so we could pick you up." Remus said with an amused smile, looking around to Lily as he spoke.

"Ahh, I was sure you'd stolen the car." She said and laughed when Sirius let out a sound that resembled a strangled chicken.

"Why would I steal this pile of scrap metal when I have my baby at home?" He asked, outrage clear in his voice as he gave her a playful glare in the review mirror.

"I duno, I like the car." Lily said with a smile, causing Sirius to launch into a ramble about how much better motorbikes were compared to boring old cars. Remus caught her eye and they both rolled their eyes, laughing quietly as Sirius remained oblivious.

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	7. Party Abandonment

I'm so sorry it's taken such a long time to get this one out. The party itself originally wasn't anywhere near as long as this, but I didn't like it so I kept changing it. As a result of my dislike of the party and other commitments rescently it's taken me ages. The story is, however drawing to a close in the next few chapters. Summer is almost over and the four students are about to be hit with something... crushing? haha.

Disclaimer - character's are not mine.

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**Chapter Seven - Party Abandonment**

As expected of a rich, old, pureblood family, the Potter house was more the Potter mansion. With great sweeping lawns out the front and a huge two story house sitting on a slight hill in the middle of the property, it was the very picture of wealth and prestige.

The three friends found themselves uncomfortable as house-elves took their coats and guided them inside the massive building. The entrance hall was just as elaborate as the house looked and Sirius, Remus and Lily found themselves standing awkwardly for a minute as everyone else was formally greeting one another, robes the very latest in fashion and smiles all painfully fake.

"There you lot are!" The familiar voice of the Potter heir was heard behind them. They turned around to see James politely pushing his way through the crowd towards them, a slight smile curving the corner of his lips.

"James, mate. I was beginning to wonder if you were even going to make an appearance." Sirius grinned boyishly as the black haired teen came to a stop before them.

"Argh, I was caught up with some Ministry people, boring old coots." He rolled his eyes as his friends smiled appreciatively.

"Poor baby." Lily grinned at him, completely unsympathetic.

"Well I do love your sympathy for me," he replied dryly with a bland look at her smirking face.

"Well, just remember later tonight when you're asking yourself what the hell we're doing here; you were the one to invite us." Remus said and Sirius and Lily both snorted loudly.

"Believe me; the thoughts are already crossing my mind." James said, a large grin on his face as he felt the tension leaving his shoulders and a relaxed smile crossing his lips.

As a standard rule, James had never really enjoyed these function dinners that his parents forced him into attending. They normally consisted of the richest and dumbest people. If someone wasn't sprouting off about how much money they had, they were shamelessly sucking up so someone else in the hopes of future favors. It really was quite sickening.

"Come on, let's go stand in a corner, with any luck no one will come near us and we'll not have to talk to any of the idiots here." James said with and led his friends off to the side, ignoring all the people trying to catch his eye in the hope of conversing with him.

They had only been standing there for ten minutes before Sirius finally couldn't help himself and began laughing. Upon noticing the odd looks he was receiving from the three he explained himself amongst his amusement.

"Everyone's been staring at us the moment we came inside. It wasn't so bad until Jamie-boy here came over to us. It's really quite funny."

Remus rolled his eyes at his simple minded friend as Lily and James looked around to confirm what he had said. Upon noticing the looks of shock, confusion and – on the faces of those who went to Hogwarts with them – disgust, they both glanced at each other and smiled.

"Well this is probably the most interesting thing to have happened at the Potter Annual Dinner since, well, ever." James said with a rueful smile.

The four slipped into casual conversation as the night progressed. They attempted to ignore most of the odd staring they were receiving, until Lily and Sirius got annoyed and began sending death glares at those who openly stared. James and Remus just grinned with amusement as people looked away, blushes staining their cheeks.

The sound of a bell chiming caused confusion amongst the three as they looked at the other guests turning and beginning to move towards the large wooden doors that had suddenly opened.

"That's the dinner bell," James explained, turning towards the door like everyone else was doing.

"You announce dinner with a bell?" Lily asked dryly, eyebrow raised in slight disbelief.

"Yeah, it's 'how things are done' here." James rolled his eyes as he did quotations in the air. A snort of amusement was his only answer.

"James, we need to talk." A voice suddenly said off to the side. All four pairs of eyes snapped over to the three teenagers in their own year that stood stiffly to the side.

"What?" James asked, confusion colouring his voice.

"We need to talk to you, now." The teen repeated, sounding strained.

Glancing at his friends, James rolled his eyes.

"I'll be back in a minute, just go on inside and you'll be seated." He said, pointing towards the doors.

He turned to the three suck-ups and followed them as they walked towards the entrance door. He didn't turn back to his friends, who glanced at each other before following and moving into the shadows of a large sculpture. Once they'd stopped, the three newcomers rounded on James with large grins on their faces.

"Ok James, you've got to tell us; what's the plan?" One asked eagerly.

"What plan?" James asked in confusion.

"The plan with Black, Evans and Lupin of corse!" Another exclaimed.

"What the hell are you talking about?" James asked, slight irritation entering his voice.

"Just giving a small taste of the high life to the 'poor' of our school, are you?" The third joked.

"What?"

"The three paupers. Gods James! I really don't get why you're going to so much trouble just for a laugh. I know its funny having them here so you can put them in their places; but do they have to stay for dinner?"

"Yeah, they might contaminate the food or something with their poorness." The three laughed appreciatively. James, however, found nothing at all amusing about their little exchange. Anger and an odd protective instinct stirred within his veins as his fists clenched. He opened his mouth to tell the three just where they could shove their unfounded speculations and opinions when sudden movement from the corner of his eyes caught his attention. Before he could react, his three new friends swept past him and out the front door – furious glares directed at him.

Throwing the snickering trio before him a venomous glare that promised retribution later, he ran out the house after his friends who were already half way across the lawn.

"Guys, will you wait up!" James yelled, briefly thankful he was so fit that he could catch up with them.

Lily suddenly swung around, red hair flying out and green eyes blazing with a furious anger.

"So this is all just a game to you, Potter? You insufferable, selfish bastard!" She screamed.

"No, it's-"

"Its' fine Potter. You have your own perfect life to look after anyway. Can't have 'King Potter' handing around with the dregs of society, now can we?" Sirius growled angrily.

Hurt and anger swelled in him as he stood before the two furious teens and Remus who refused to even look up at him. A voice in the back of his head whispered for him to calm down before he said something he'd regret later. Angrily he ignored the voice as it sounded suspiciously like the young werewolf before him.

"Yeah, well; you lot are all pretending anyway! When school starts back we're all going to go back to exactly what we were before." James pointed at each of them as he spoke. "Sirius Black – no good criminal; Lily Evans – the social outcast of the whole of Hogwarts; Remus Lupin – the invisible bookworm; and me – James Potter – the most popular person in the school." James finally finished quietly.

They stood breathing heavily; the hurt being overshadowed by furious anger at the painful truth behind his words.

"Screw you," Sirius' voice broke the strained silence. "Screw all of you. I want nothing to do with you fakers!" With his piece said he turned and stormed away quickly.

Looking furious Lily too turned and walked off, away from them all. Remus glanced at James; a hurt and disappointed look swimming in his honey coloured eyes.

"Why, James?" He asked softly. When he received no answer he too turned and left.

James stood there a moment, once again alone only this time with an ache in his chest that pounded in time with his heart. Closing his eyes he took a deep breath and pushed down his hurt and anger before turning and heading back to his house – silently cursing the day that Dumbledore had announced this god forsaken assignment.

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	8. Contemplations

This is the second last chapter. Unfortunately the characters are all sitting at home feeling sorry for themselves...

Disclaimer - characters are not mine.

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**Chapter Eight – Contemplations **

Remus sat quietly outside his house, under the shade of a large tree. A piece of parchment was resting upon one bent knee, an ink pot forgotten on the ground and a quill held loosely in his hand. His honey eyes stared blankly at the parchment before him, the heading glaring at him, goading him.

He let out what must have been his fifth sigh for the last ten minutes as he rested his head against the unyielding tree trunk and frowned. How was he supposed to finish this stupid assignment if he couldn't think of anything to write?

What had he learnt from this assignment anyway?

Sure, now he knew more than he had ever thought fit to know about wizarding society, but what was interesting about that, really? He wanted to end this assignment with something good, something that would make people sit up and take notice about how interesting and beneficial – in a twisted way – it had been for him. As loath as he was to admit it right now, this summer had been the best time of his life, even if it had ended in hurt…

With determination sparking in his eyes he dipped the quill into the ink and began writing.

***

It was just a fact that over the past few days Lily hadn't been able to concentrate at all. Every time she picked up a quill or a book, anything, all she could think about was those three stupid boys. Whenever she looked at a book she thought of Remus, when she heard the sound of a motorbike she half expected to see Sirius coming down the road and whenever someone came around the corner she always had a brief moment where she'd hope it would be James.

Frustrated, she snapped her potions book closed and tossed it carelessly onto her bed, sick of having read the same paragraph eight times already. She laid back on the pale red covers on her bed and stared blankly at the off-white ceiling. She couldn't understand it; why the hell did she care so much about three good for nothing boys?

It was true what James had said, as much as it hurt her to admit. They were all living in a world that just didn't exist. When school started in few short days she knew without a doubt that none of them would talk to her; that Sirius would sit alone in his compartment on the train, Remus would have a book open with his nose buried in it and James would be surrounded by more people then he cared for. As much as she had loved this summer – hell it had been the best time of her life! – She knew it was all just a fantasy world they had been living in. As Sirius had said, they were all a bunch of fakers.

Feeling as if she might cry for the 100th time in the last few days, she rolled onto her side and curled up into a ball. Hoping that by closing herself off from the world she could protect herself from the pain and hurt. Opening her glassy green eyes they came to rest of her neatly organized desk.

She frowned at the empty parchment sitting patiently, the stack of parchment beside it her copy of the assignment they had spent the better part of their summer completing. Well, she glared at the empty parchment, it was almost complete.

Heaving a heavy sigh she uncurled herself and pushed up from the comfort of the bed and wandered over to the innocent looking desk. Sitting before it she opened a new pot of ink before pulling out a quill in a flourish that would put a pure blood to shame, she lightly tapped it to her cheek as she contemplated the sheet before her.

Thinking over the past summer, thoughts began to take root and she slowly dipped her quill into the plain black ink and began to write.

***

Opening his door with a rag from the garage downstairs, Sirius meandered into his empty little apartment. Chucking the rag onto the small table carelessly he walked into the kitchenette and washed his hands free from grease and oil that had come from spending the past four hours working on his bike. Once mostly clean he dried them before grabbing a muggle soft drink from the fridge and wandering over to his couch. Sitting down heavily he cracked the can open and took a sip, eyes watering slightly at the fizziness of the drink. With a deep breath he settled into the seat comfortably.

He sat still for five minutes before opening grey eyes a crack and frowning at the stack parchment resting on one of the corners of the table.

"Stupid thing," he mumbled to himself as he took another sip of his drink.

Silence once again filled the area as Sirius found his eyes drawn back to the completed assignment. As he stared at it a silent war raged inside his mind as to whether or not he should give in and once again re-read his final piece of the assessment.

Grumbling to himself he finally gave in and, leaning over, he placed his drink on the table with one hand while he picked up the final piece of parchment resting on top of the pile with the other. Sighing, he began reading the words written in his own untidy scrawl, picking up a quill and occasionally making small changes for the third time since he had written it.

***

James shuffled into his messy room, the floor covered with magazines and clothes that the house elves had yet to pick up. He moved over to the only slightly clear thing in the room – his desk. There was only one thing sitting innocently atop the wood, a stack of parchment awaiting delivery.

He flopped into the chair and stared contemplatively at the stack. He knew that he needed to send it soon so that it would get to Hogwarts before him and thus be marked. He was pretty sure that they had passed quite well with it; after all they had spent enough time on the stupid thing.

A frown married his brow as he tried to banish the thoughts of the other three group members from him mind.

What he had said the night of the party was painfully true. He knew that it was always just a make believe world they were living in. There was no way that he would have ever talked to any of them if he hadn't of been partnered up with them. They might as well have been from another world entirely for how different their lives were. While James found himself living in a world of fake smiles and empty promises he knew that he wasn't the only one who suffered. Lily Evans, for all her tough talk and angry words, really she was lonely and had been ignored for so long that any kind of attention was better than nothing. Sirius Black wasn't the no good criminal that everyone thought of him as, he was a good guy who was just misunderstood thanks to all the rumors his own family had started up about him. Then there was studious little Remus Lupin who, when given the chance, enjoyed many things that had nothing to do with school or books, he was just so kind hearted that he allowed others to take advantage of him.

Shaking his head slightly, James let out another sigh before dragging himself to his feet and moving over to where his owl, Swift, was perched on the top of his cupboard. Calling him down softly, the bird landed on his shoulder and nibbled on his ear affectionately.

"Hey boy, I need you to deliver my assignment to Hogwarts. Can you do that for me?" He asked as he bundled up the parchment and tied it to the offered leg. With a soft hoot the owl waited patiently for him to finish before ruffling its feathers then hopping out the window.

Once again sitting at his desk, James Potter wondered silently to himself if he had done the right thing.

***

As the four teenagers struggled with their inner demons and doubts; the Wanderers Café remained strangely empty. The small both behind the half wall and bushes gathered dust as the regulars of the café ideally wondered where the four friends where who always sat there on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays were. It was strange that they had all suddenly stopped coming, they had always seemed to have such fun and they had been so close…

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	9. September 1st

The final of the story. Thank you to everyone who's stuck it out throughout the posting of this story, I really appreciate it.

Also, thanks to everyone who took the time to review this story - they were all so wonderful!

So, without further ado, welcome to the last chapter of Summer Changes, I hope it's everything you were hoping for.

Disclaimer - character's are not mine.

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**Chapter Nine – September 1st**

September 1st found the usual hustle and bustle of Platform 9¾ as parents rushed their late children onto the train, students gossiped about their summers and others panicked about things they were only just realizing they'd left behind at home. The four would be friends only allowed themselves a single glance at each other before they pushed any kind of thoughts to the backs of their minds. It didn't matter anymore what they thought, they would return to school like nothing had ever happened. It would be the same as always.

As if to reinforce this fact the four found themselves in their usual compartments of the Express as it began to move out of the station. With a sigh Sirius stared aimlessly out the window, Lily played a game of exploding snap by herself, Remus began reading ahead in Potions and James was once again bombarded by false smiles and insincere welcome backs.

It was just like nothing at all had happened over the summer. It was all like is had always been in their lives. The only problem to contend with now was something had indeed changed. They weren't the same four students that had gotten off the train at the end of the last school year. No, now they knew what it was like to have friends and without them their lives just didn't seem so fine anymore. The emptiness that had always been lurking at the back of their minds was now brought into the light and it refused to be ignored again.

***

The four took their normal seats at the Gryffindor house table after surviving the rather uncomfortable train ride. None of the rest of the student population suspected that anything had changed. The gossip was still about the group of now seventh years, but most people were just repeating what they knew from last semester. James was subjected to much insincere sympathy for, what everyone assumed, had been an awful summer. At the same time, Lily and Remus were forced to endure the cruel whispers and hateful glares of their peers. It was only Sirius, as usual, who was given a wide berth in which students tried to pretend he didn't even exist.

Once the sorting and feast had finally finished, when most students were full and only looking forward to getting out and finding their warm beds in their dorms, Dumbledore once again stood.

"I'm sure you're all eager to get off to bed. However, if Lily Evans, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and James Potter could please stop off at my office before they leave for just a moment? Thank you and sleep well."

With that, talk sprang up amongst the students as any traces of sleepiness vanished and even more glances were sent the fours way. Questions about why Dumbledore wanted to see them and theories about failed tests worked their way to the fours ears.

So, it was in a dead silence that the four made their way to the Headmasters office, butterflies flying rampant in their guts. Even the reassuring smile on Dumbledore's face as they were seated before his desk failed to provide any kind of comfort.

"Lemon drop?" He offered kindly, all four politely refused.

"Well, I confess I asked you four up here to talk about your summer assignment, as I'm sure you've all guessed. There was just something I wished to read you before I finished with it." At this the elderly man shifted about some parchment on his desk, some of it they recognized as their assignment. Adjusting his half moon spectacles he cleared his throat and began reading aloud what was written there.

"'_When I began this assignment, I truly believed that it would be the most painful, frustrating and stupidest thing ever. While I was right about believing that, I didn't plan on it being because it was painful to see people I'd begun to consider friends hurting; that it'd be frustrating that someone was blaming himself, and had been taught to do so, for something completely out of his control; that it was stupid because we were all so inexperienced at being friends that we let one wrong word completely destroy a whole summer of experiences. It was because of this painful, frustrating and stupid assignment that I learned, for the first time in years, what it felt like to not be alone.'_"

Dumbledore then picked up another piece of parchment.

"'_Despite the information I learned by doing the assignment, I believe I've learned more in my social interactions with my three group members then I have in my six years of being at this school. For the past six years I've been aware that I wasn't accepted by my fellow peers on anything more than a 'homework help' level. I had resigned myself to this position and – don't misunderstand me – I'm truly thankful for having even been allowed to be here at Hogwarts. However, this past summer has opened my eyes to so many new experiences. I did things I'd only ever read about people doing. I saw things and felt things that I didn't even know were possible. That's why, this summer – through this assignment – I have learnt what it feels like to be valued.'_"

Another piece of parchment found its way into the Professors hands.

"'_When I first found out about this assignment I fully planned on not even bothering to turn up or help in any way, shape or form. However, it was Lily Evans coming into my compartment on the train – something most people avoid doing like the plague – that I changed my mind. It wasn't always easy getting on with the other three – by no stretch of the imagination was it always pleasant. Yet, this summer; despite many arguments, glaring and just plain name calling; I found myself – for the first time in my life – feeling like I really belonged, that I was accepted despite my obvious faults and sometimes uncouth manner. This summer, I felt like I'd finally been accepted for the first time in my life.'_"

Finally the fourth and final piece of parchment.

"'_This summer has been one of the strangest and most confusing ones of my life. I was expecting it to be unbearable with these three students who I've only ever heard negative stories about these past six years. What I found was far greater than anything I could have ever imagined. While I am popular at school, I doubt that most people who wish for my friendship actually know the real me. This past summer, these three students who I only knew their names and the odd rumor or two about, have become closer to me than any other students at Hogwarts. This summer I've found students who I'd have confidently considered my friends.'_"

Stunned silence met Dumbledore's words as the four astounded teens stared blankly at their Headmaster; the old man simply smiled over the top of his now interlocked fingers.

"Was… was there anything else, Sir?" Lily finally managed to rasp out.

"No, other than you four got top marks for this assignment. Well done." He said simply before his office doors opened to announce he was finished with them. Numb with shock the four rose to their feet and left the office, blindly walking down corridors as thoughts swam through their minds. Finally, James led them into a room that had four armchairs in a semi-circle around a warm fireplace.

They had only been sitting in awkward silence for two minutes before Lily suddenly chocked on a sob and covered her face with her hands, legs curling up under her.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean any of it, James, you're not a selfish bastard and, Sirius I should be the one asking for your acceptance and Remus; you've no idea how great I think you are – not because you're super smart, but because you're so kind and nice to everyone." She cried loudly.

The three were still for a moment before, to everyone's surprise; Remus moved forward and gathered the weeping girl into his arms.

"You're right, Lily. It was a really stupid argument. You're not alone." He said in his normally soft voice, concern and comfort tugging at the edges of it.

"Yeah, you guys are way cooler than being seen as a criminal by the rest of the school." Sirius grinned boyishly as he joined the group hug.

It was after four beats of silence that James found himself under three scrutinizing gazes. Shifting uncomfortably, James tried to make up his mind.

"You need to pick James. You're the one who's going to have to change their lifestyle the most if you pick us. We don't exactly fit in with your world of popularity." A rueful smile crossed Sirius' lips before he once again turned serious. "It's your choice and, whatever you decide, we'll respect it."

Silence once again descended upon them as James struggled to choose between the popular lifestyle he'd always known and the freedom they were offering, a life where no one would care what he did or control how he did it.

He let his dark eyes travel over the trio clumped together on one of the couches. The red haired girl who had a wicked sense of humor and a smile that made his heart flutter. The bookworm who hid the adventuress side of himself behind dusty tombs and quills and parchment. Then the supposed criminal who had a passion for motorbikes and a strong protective instinct around those he cared about. Looking at the three he allowed the faintest of smiles to flicker to life before he put on a cocky smirk, his decision made.

"Well, I guess I could share my precious time with you lot." He drawled as Sirius and Remus let out indigent cries. Lily, on the other hand, jumped up and hugged him tightly as they both laughed.

***

It was an hour later, when they'd gathered together their scattered emotions and caught up with one another about the last few days of their holidays; that they managed to make it to the fat lady without receiving a detention. Looking at the painting as she raised an eyebrow in question at them, they could almost feel the magnitude of their life-changing moment hit them.

"Are you ready?" James looked at his three companions – no, his three friends.

"As ready as I'll ever be; you two?" Sirius looked over with a slight smile.

"Yeah," Remus offered a bright smile that boosted their confidence and pushed away some of the nervous butterflies in their stomachs. Lily, however, had an almost pensive look on her face.

"Everything's about to change, isn't it?"

Grinning James grabbed her hand and squeezed it encouragingly.

"Just think of it as the beginning of our next great adventure."

With a large, confident smile he took a step forward and – offering a password – lead them through the entrance to not only the Gryffindor Common Room, but the entrance to a brand new life.

Then End.

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